Canadians can expect to be underserved for more than a year during automation transition.

November 8, 2011: Gloria Galloway reports in The Globe and Mail that Service Canada is unable to meet its 28-day response goal for new claims or its five-day callback goal for inquiries, and it hires hundreds fewer employees than it did before the economic crash of 2008. Jobless Canadians are filing more "dire needs" requests than ever before, unable to make ends meet while their EI claims are processed.

"Jobless Canadians are waiting longer for their first employment-insurance cheques and finding it increasingly difficult to get answers about the delays as the government reduces the number of people paid to process claims and handle calls.

The main phone line at Service Canada is constantly jammed because there is not enough staff to deal with the high volume of calls from unemployed people who want to know when they will get their money.

Meanwhile, the jobless rate rose last month to 7.3 percent and could continue to grow if the economic recovery cannot be maintained — a trend that would put greater pressure on the EI system..."